Estranged Read Online Free

to
start making dinner.
    The girls were already beginning to
crash by the time dinner was served, and Kalei was feeling pretty
worn as well. Teia was practically falling asleep on her plate, and
Kalei began fighting off the ghosts and anxieties that began to
creep back in at the edges of her mind. She could even hear the
blond man laughing as the memory of that night began to replay in
her mind, unwilling to give her a moment’s piece on this
anniversary. The laughter went on and on and Kalei was starting to
wonder if she was losing her mind when Kas said, “Auntie, who’s
laughing?”
    Kalei’s head shot up and she looked at
Fenn, who shrugged. Realizing the laughter was real, she ran to the
living room and pulled back the curtains. The blond-haired man was
standing on their lawn, laughing. He stopped when he saw Kalei, his
face growing with a wide grin.
    Terror robbed Kalei of her limbs, her
lungs, even her voice. It crushed in across her chest, pouring down
through her veins. She couldn’t move. She couldn’t breathe. She
couldn’t think.
    Fenn stirred at the table behind her.
“Honey, what is it?”
    Power rushed back along with a fresh
wave of horror. “Fenn! Grab the girls! NOW!”
    Kalei didn’t have time to
explain. Luckily, a loud BANG at the front door did it for
her. Shit! He’s not alone. She pulled the curtains shut and ran to the
office to retrieve her silver 9mm pistol from the safe. When she
returned to the living room, Fenn had Teia sitting on the couch as
he wrestled with her shoe, trying to get it onto her fidgeting
foot.
    Kas was sitting on the floor beside
Fenn, crying as the Estranged continued to bang on the door.
Keeping one eye on the source of the banging, Kalei walked over to
her niece and gently rubbed her back. Kalei’s determination
threatened to melt away as she saw the tears in Kas’s small brown
eyes. Kalei took a deep breath. “Kas, remember what Auntie told you
about the Estranged?”
    Kas sniffed. “They’re bad people who
want to hurt us.”
    “ Yes, and right now,
they’re the ones knocking at the door, so we’ve got to be really
quiet so they don’t get us, okay? Quiet as a mouse.”
    After another sniff, Kas seemed to be
holding her breath as she whispered, “Okay.”
    Kalei placed her hand on the child’s
shoulder and gave it a soft squeeze. Kalei looked Kas in the eyes
and said, “Now I need you to take care of your sister and follow
Uncle down to the car. Can you do that for me?”
    “ Yes, Auntie.”
    Kalei smiled in spite of herself and
turned around to tell Fenn, “Don’t worry about the shoe. Just get
the girls to the car and—”
    The window shattered as two Estranged
burst into the living room. Without hesitating, Kalei gave them
each a bullet to the brain and told Fenn, “Get the girls to the
car. NOW!”
    Fenn scooped up Kas and Teia and ran
for the garage door, the girls screaming in his arms.
    A dozen more Estranged were climbing
through the window, surprisingly agile and quick as they jumped
through it. Kalei could feel the adrenaline rushing through her
veins as the Estranged closed the distance between them. She shot
the first four down, then ran after Fenn as the rest stumbled over
their comrades’ bodies. She ran into the garage, slammed the door
shut behind her, then grabbed a nearby stepladder and wedged it
under the handle.
    She leaned her forehead against the
white door for a moment, catching her breath and willing her
heartbeat to slow down. Behind her, a small voice asked, “Auntie,
are we going to die?”
    Kalei instinctually slid her thumb
along the gun and put the safety on before she turned around to see
Kas staring at her with wide, terrified eyes. Kalei closed her own
eyes against the surge of tears the little girl’s question had
created. Kalei opened her eyes again, kneeled down to Kas’s level,
and said, “Everything is going to be okay, sweetie. Don’t you
worry.” She just wished she could believe what she said.
    Kalei